Image inspection device, image forming device, and computer-readable recording medium storing a program

ABSTRACT

An image inspection device which enables the user to know the cause of an abnormality in a read image. The image inspection device includes: an image reader outputting a read image generated by reading an image formed on a sheet of paper by an image forming device; an image inspection section inspecting the read image and outputting an inspection result which takes the read image determined not to have an abnormality as a normal image and the read image determined to have the abnormality as an abnormal image; an inspection result report generator generating an inspection result report according to the read image and the inspection result; an inspection result report output section outputting the inspection result report; and a controller performing control to cause the inspection result report output section to output the normal image and the abnormal image in a comparable manner.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 16/451,058, filed on Jun. 25, 2019, which claims priority ofJapanese Patent Application No. 2018-152187, filed on Aug. 13, 2018. Theentire disclosure of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/451,058 andJapanese Patent Application No. 2018-152187 are incorporated herein byreference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND Technological Field

The present invention relates to an image inspection device, an imageforming device and a computer-readable recording medium storing aprogram.

Description of the Related Art

In the past, an inspection has been made on a sheet of paper on which animage has been formed (printed) by an image forming device, in order tocheck whether a correct image has been formed or whether it has an imageforming defect such as a stain or image registration error or not.

The inspection is intended to confirm that the image printed on thesheet of paper satisfies the quality expected by the creator (user) ofimage forming data (for example, an original image) The inspection itemsare printing position, image stains, image scraping, density unevenness,streaks, gloss unevenness and so on.

Formerly, the user conducted a visual inspection of the image printed ona sheet of paper. However, when a large number of pages or copies areprinted, visual inspection by the user requires a large number of manhours, which means that this approach has limitations.

For this reason, an image inspection device which inspects the imagegenerated by reading the image formed on a sheet of paper with ascanner, etc. (hereinafter called “read image”) has been used to checkfor an image forming defect. Some of such image inspection devices havethe function to display an inspection result to enable the user to knowthe existence/nonexistence of an image forming defect, etc. Thedisplayed inspection result includes not only the existence/nonexistenceof an image forming defect but also image information on the inspectedsheet.

For example, the inspection result shows the spot (position) of an imageforming defect in the read image. However, when the user compares theinspection result with the image forming data, the user can know thespot concerned but may be unable to identify the cause of the imageforming defect.

Patent Literature 1 (JP-A-2017-202627) discloses a technique whichcompares a read image with a corresponding original image and prints adefect detection report on a sheet. In the defect detection report, theread image and original image are formed on the sheet and the result ofdetection of an image forming defect in the read image is printed.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of a defectdetection report 58.

The defect detection report 58 includes a normal image 51 and adefect-detected image 52 which are printed on a sheet. The normal image51 is generated from the original image and the defect-detected image 52is generated from a read image with an image forming defect. The normalimage 51 and the defect-detected image 52 are generated here in smallersize than the printed size of the original image and read image. Thedefect-detected image 52 has defects as a color firefly-like spot 53 anda white streak 54. The defects are enclosed by red circles 55 and 56.

CITATION LIST Patent Literature

-   Patent Literature 1: JP-A-2017-202627

SUMMARY

However, the normal image 51 generated from the original image asdisclosed in Patent Literature 1 is merely an ideal image. The imageformed on a sheet actually by the image forming device on which varioussettings have been made may be different from the original image. Whenthe normal image 51 generated from the original image is used forcomparison with the read image, whether the defect detected in the readimage is allowable or not is unclear in some cases. In addition, if thedifference between the normal image 51 and the read image is large,there is the possibility that all the read images are detected asdefective.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstancesand has an object to enable the user to easily recognize an abnormalitycontained in a read image.

To achieve at least the abovementioned object, according to an aspect ofthe present invention, an image inspection device reflecting one aspectof the present invention comprises: an image reader which outputs a readimage generated by reading an image formed on a recording material by animage forming device; an image inspection section which inspects theread image and outputs an inspection result which takes the read imagedetermined not to have an abnormality as a normal image and the readimage determined to have the abnormality as an abnormal image; aninspection result report generator which generates an inspection resultreport according to the read image and the inspection result; aninspection result report output section which outputs the inspectionresult report; and a controller which performs control to cause theinspection result report output section to output the normal image andthe abnormal image in a comparable manner.

The above image inspection device is one mode of the present invention,and an image forming device and a computer-readable recording mediumstoring a program, each reflecting one aspect of the present invention,are configured in the same manner as the above image inspection device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The advantages and features provided by an embodiment of the inventionwill become more fully understood from the detailed description givenhereinbelow and the appended drawings which are given by way ofillustration only, and thus are not intended as a definition of thelimits of the present invention:

FIG. 1 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of an existingdefect detection report;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the generalconfiguration of an image forming device according to an embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 3 is a control block diagram which shows an example of theconfiguration of the main part of the image forming device according tothe embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram which shows an example of theinternal configuration of the image forming device according to theembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram which shows an example of variouscomponents of the image forming device according to the embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of imageinspection which is made by the image inspection section according tothe embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of storage ofthe inspection results of read images by the image inspection sectionaccording to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of thecomposition of an inspection result report according to the embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 9 is an explanatory drawing which shows a display example of aninspection result report according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 10 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of aninspection result report which displays an abnormal image according tothe embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of aninspection result report which displays a normal image and an abnormalimage in a comparable manner according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 12 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of aninspection result report which displays a normal image and an abnormalimage in enlarged form in a comparable manner according to theembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is an explanatory drawing which shows a display example of theinspection level setting screen according to the embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 14 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of anemphasized abnormal spot displayed according to the embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 15 is an explanatory drawing which shows a display example of anormal image according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 16A is a drawing which shows a display example of a reportgenerated by collecting only normal images according to the embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 16B is a drawing which shows a display example of a reportgenerated by collecting only abnormal images according to the embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 16C is a drawing which shows a display example of a reportgenerated by collecting abnormal images and normal images linked to theabnormal images according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 17A is a drawing which shows an example of the sheets in the firstcollated set according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 17B is a drawing which shows an example of the sheets in the N-thcollated set according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 17C is a drawing which shows an example of the normal read imagesdetermined as normal in the first collated set and the abnormal readimages determined as abnormal in the N-th collated set according to theembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 18A is a drawing which shows an example of reference images of tenpages which are generated from read images in the proof mode accordingto the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 18B is a drawing which shows an example of the read images ofsheets printed in the production printing mode and the sheets treated asspoilage according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 18C is a drawing which shows that a reference image, a normalimage, and an abnormal image for each page are linked and stored in astorage according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 19 is a flowchart which shows an example of the process to linknormal image page information and abnormal image page informationaccording to the embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 20 is a flowchart which shows an example of the process to generatean inspection result report according to the embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be describedwith reference to the drawings. However, the scope of the invention isnot limited to the disclosed embodiment. In the specification and theappended drawings, the constituent elements which have substantially thesame functions or structures are designated by the same reference signsand repeated description thereof is omitted.

Embodiment <Example of the General Configuration of the Image FormingDevice>

First, an example of the general configuration of an image formingdevice 1 will be described.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the generalconfiguration of the image forming device 1. FIG. 2 shows the elementsconsidered as required to explain the present invention or relatedelements thereto and the image forming device 1 is not limited to theexample.

As shown in FIG. 2, the image forming device 1 according to the presentembodiment includes a main unit 10, a large capacity paper feeder 20, areader 30, and an after-treatment section 40. The image forming device 1is connected to an information terminal 50 via a network N such as LAN.

As shown in FIG. 2, the main unit 10 includes a scanner 200, an ADF(Auto Document Feeder) 300, an operation display 400, and a printer 500.In other words, the image forming device 1 according to the presentembodiment is a so-called digital multifunctional machine which has ascanner function, a copying function, and a printer function.

The main unit 10 includes a plurality of paper feed trays with a paperfeed mechanism, and a paper feed sensor (not shown) to detect thesupplied sheet is provided near each paper feed tray. Each of the paperfeed trays can house paper (an example of a recording material), inwhich the paper type (plain paper, one-side printed paper, recycledpaper, wood-free paper, tab paper, etc.) and size can be different amongthe trays. A resin sheet may be used as a recording material.

The reader 30 is an example of the image inspection device which readsthe printed sheet conveyed from the main unit 10 and determines whetherthe sheet is normal or not. The sheet is inspected according to the readimage generated by reading the front and back sides of the conveyedsheet with CCDs (Charged Coupled Devices) 31 installed for each side ofthe sheet (see FIG. 3 which will be described later).

The after-treatment section 40 is a so-called finisher which performsvarious after-treatment processes for the sheet inspected by the reader30. For example, the after-treatment section 40 includes a sorting unitwhich performs sorting of the sheet conveyed from the main unit 10, apunching unit which performs punching, a folding unit which performsfolding, an edge trimming unit which performs edge trimming, and acutting unit which performs cutting. These units are not shown in thefigure.

The after-treatment section 40 also includes paper delivery trays. Thesheet conveyed through the reader 30 is delivered to a paper deliverytray. If the reader 30 detects an abnormality in a printed sheet, theafter-treatment section 40 performs control to deliver the sheet in amanner to distinguish it from a normal printed sheet. Therefore, theafter-treatment section 40 includes not only a normal paper deliverytray for normal sheets but also an abnormal paper delivery tray forsheets detected as abnormal.

In the image forming device 1, for example, the original placed on theoriginal tray of the ADF 300 is conveyed to the contact glass as thereading area for the scanner 200 and the image of the original is readby the optical system of the scanner 200. Here, the image is not limitedto image data such as a graphic or photo but also includes text datasuch as characters and symbols.

The image (analog image signal) read by the scanner 200 is sent to amanagement section 100 shown in FIG. 3 which will be described later andin the management section 100, it is A/D converted and subjected tovarious image processing steps before being sent to the printer 500 inthe main unit 10. The printer 500 forms an image on a sheet suppliedfrom a paper feed tray or the large capacity paper feeder 20 accordingto the digital image data. The sheet on which the image has been formedis passed through the reader 30 by a paper delivery mechanism and thenconveyed to the after-treatment section 40, and in the after-treatmentsection 40, the sheet is subjected to a prescribed after-treatment andthen delivered to the paper delivery tray.

Furthermore, the image forming device 1 is connected to the externalinformation terminal 50 via the network N. Various data includingprinting instructions are sent from the information terminal 50 to theimage forming device 1. Then, the image forming device 1 performs theprinting process to form an image on a sheet according to an instructionfrom the information terminal 50.

The operation display 400 shows a message indicating an abnormality on aprinted sheet according to the result of inspection of a read image bythe reader 30, or an abnormal image, etc. Such a message or image may betransmitted via the network N to the information terminal 50 anddisplayed on the information terminal 50. The operation display 400 isused as an example of an inspection result report output section 127 inFIG. 4 which will be described later.

<Example of the Configuration of the Main Part of the Image FormingDevice>

Next, an example of the configuration of the main part of the imageforming device 1 will be described.

FIG. 3 is a control block diagram which shows an example of theconfiguration of the main part of the image forming device 1.

The main unit 10 includes the management section 100, scanner 200, ADF300, operation display 400, printer 500, and a controller 600.

The management section 100 includes an image control CPU (CentralProcessing Unit) 101, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 102, a RAM (Random AccessMemory) 103, a read processor 105, a write processor 106, a DRAM(Dynamic Random Access Memory) control IC 107, a compression IC 108, adecompression IC 109, and an image memory 110. The management section100 is connected to a storage 104.

The image control CPU 101 reads the various processing programs storedin the ROM 102, such as a system program, an image forming program, anda paper delivery processing program, and decompresses the programs inthe RAM 103 and centrally controls the operation of the components ofthe image forming device 1 according to the decompressed program.

For example, the image control CPU 101 generates a job according to theimage information received from the scanner 200 connected to themanagement section 100, or the controller 600, and the setup informationreceived through the operation display 400 connected to the managementsection 100. Then, an image is formed on a sheet of paper by executingthe job. Here, the job means a series of operating steps related to theformation of an image. For example, when originals for a certain numberof pages (sheets) are to be duplicated, the entire series of operatingsteps to form images from the originals for the certain number of pagesconstitutes one job.

The ROM 102 is a nonvolatile memory as an example of a non-transitorycomputer-readable recording medium, such as a semiconductor memory,which stores various processing programs including the system programfor the image forming device 1, an image forming program executable onthe system program, and a paper delivery processing program. Theseprograms are stored in the form of a computer-readable program codewhich is used in the image forming device 1, and the image control CPU101 sequentially performs operation according to the program code.

The RAM 103 serves as a work area which temporarily stores the variousprograms to be executed by the image control CPU 101 and data related tothe programs, and stores a job queue, various operation settings and soon.

The storage 104 is a nonvolatile memory or the like, which storesvarious setting data related to the image forming device 1. The storage104 also stores image information related to execution of a job.

The read processor 105 performs various processes such as analog signalprocessing, A/D conversion, and shading, on the analog image signalreceived from the scanner 200, generates digital image data and sends itto the compression IC 108.

The write processor 106 generates a PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) signalaccording to the image data received from the decompression IC 109 andsends it to the printer 500.

The DRAM control IC 107 controls the compression process of image databy the compression IC 108 and the decompression process of compresseddata by the decompression IC 109 under the control by the image controlCPU 101 and also controls input/output of image data in the image memory110. For example, when an instruction is issued to store the image dataread by the scanner 200, the DRAM control IC 107 causes the compressionIC 108 to compress the image data received from the read processor 105and store the compressed image data in the compression memory 111 of theimage memory 110.

Furthermore, when an instruction is issued to form an image from thecompressed image data stored in the compression memory 111, the DRAMcontrol IC 107 reads the compressed image data from the compressionmemory 111 and causes the decompression IC 109 to decompress it andstore the decompressed data in the page memory 112. Further, the DRAMcontrol IC 107 reads the image data stored in the page memory 112 andsends it to the write processor 106.

The compression IC 108 compresses the received image data under thecontrol by the DRAM control IC 107.

The decompression IC 109 decompresses the received compressed image dataunder the control by the DRAM control IC 107.

The image memory 110 is, for example, a DRAM as a volatile memory andincludes a compression memory 111 and a page memory 112. The compressionmemory 111 is a memory to store compressed image data and the pagememory 112 is a memory to temporarily store the non-compressed imagedata for image formation before forming an image.

The scanner 200 includes an image sensor such as a CCD 201, and ascanner controller 202. The scanner controller 202 controls the variousparts of the scanner 200 according to a control signal from the imagecontrol CPU 101. Specifically, it performs control so that the surfaceof the original placed on the contact glass is exposure-scanned,reflected light is made to form an image in the CCD 201 and the image isread. Then, the optical signal for the image is photoelectricallyconverted into an analog image signal which is sent to the readprocessor 105.

The ADF 300, which includes an ADF controller 301 which controls the ADF300 according to a control signal from the image control CPU 101,automatically supplies the originals placed on an original tray (notshown) onto the contact glass of the scanner 200 sheet by sheet.

The operation display 400 includes an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) 401,an operation display controller 402, and a group of control keys and atouch panel which are not shown in the figure.

The LCD 401 displays, on its surface, various setup screens, imagestates, operating conditions of various functions and so on according toa display control signal from the operation display controller 402. Thesurface of the LCD 401 is a pressure-sensitive (resistance film pressuretype) touch panel in which transparent electrodes are arranged in a gridpattern, so that the XY coordinates of a point to which a force has beenapplied with a finger, touch pen or the like are detected as voltagevalues and the detected position signal is sent as an operation signalto the operation display controller 402.

The operation display controller 402 controls the display on the LCD 401according to a control signal from the image control CPU 101. Forexample, it causes the LCD 401 to display various setup screens for thepaper used in the image forming process and various processing results.Also, the operation display controller 402 sends the operation signalentered with the touch panel or control keys of the LCD 401 to the imagecontrol CPU 101.

On the LCD 401 of the operation display 400, the user can view the basicscreen for entry of printing conditions for the image forming processand a list of jobs reserved in the image forming device 1. The user canalter various settings for the image forming process as desired byoperating the touch panel, etc. of the LCD 401.

The printer 500 includes an LD (Laser Diode) section 501 and a printercontroller 502 and forms an image on a sheet of paper according to theimage data received from the write processor 106.

The LD section 501 includes an LD, a photoreceptor drum, an electrifyingpart, an exposure part, a development part, a transfer part, a cleaner,and a fixing part. The LD section 501 also includes various rollers suchas paper feed rollers, resist rollers, and paper delivery rollers forconveying the sheet along the conveying path in the LD section 501, aconveying path switching plate, and an inversion section. The conveyorof the LD section 501 supplies the sheet specified by the job from apaper feed tray under the control by the printer controller 502 andconveys the supplied sheet on the conveying path.

A plurality of sensors are provided on the conveying path of the LDsection 501. These sensors generate a detection signal as the sheetpasses and send it to the printer controller 502.

The printer controller 502 receives a control signal from the imagecontrol CPU 101 and controls operation of various parts of the LDsection 501. The printer controller 502 counts the number of sheetssupplied for each job according to detection signals from the sensorslocated on the conveying path and sends it to the image control CPU 101.

In the printer 500, according to an instruction from the printercontroller 502, the photoreceptor drum surface is electrified by theelectrifying part and according to a PWM signal received from the writeprocessor 106, the photoreceptor drum surface is irradiated with laserlight from the LD to form an electrostatic latent image. Then, in thedevelopment part, toner is made to adhere to the area of thephotoreceptor drum surface including the electrostatic latent image andthe toner is transferred to the sheet by the transfer part to form animage. After the transferred image is fixed by the fixing part, thesheet on which the image has been formed is conveyed by the paperdelivery rollers to the reader 30 and the after-treatment section 40.

The controller 600 includes a controller control part 601, a DRAMcontrol IC 602, an image memory 603, a communication control part 604,and an NIC (Network Interface Card) 605.

The controller control part 601 centrally controls operation of variousparts and distributes the data received from the external informationterminal 50 as a job through the communication control part 604 and NIC605 to the management section 100.

The DRAM control IC 602 controls storage of data received by the NIC 605and communication control part 604 in the image memory 603 and readingof data from the image memory 603. Also, the DRAM control IC 602 isconnected to the DRAM control IC 107 of the management section 100 via aPCI (Peripheral Components Interconnect) bus so that data for imageformation is read from the image memory 603 and sent to the DRAM controlIC 107 according to an instruction from the controller control part 601.

The image memory 603 is a DRAM which temporarily stores the receiveddata.

The communication control part 604 controls communication of the NIC605. The NIC 605 is a communication interface for connection to thenetwork N and receives image information, a job or the like from theinformation terminal 50 via the network N and sends it to the DRAMcontrol IC 602.

The reader 30 includes an image sensor such as a CCD 31 and a scannercontroller 32. The scanner controller 32 controls various parts of thereader 30 according to a control signal received from the image controlCPU 101 through the printer controller 502. Specifically, the front andback sides of the sheet conveyed from the main unit 10 are scanned,reflected light from the sheet is made to form an image in the CCD 31and the image formed on the sheet is read. Then, the scanner controller32 generates image data according to an optical signal from the CCD 31and sends the image data to the image control CPU 101 through theprinter controller 502.

The after-treatment section 40 includes a paper delivery controller 41.The after-treatment section 40 performs various after-treatmentprocesses and then delivers the sheet inspected by the reader 30 to apaper delivery tray. The paper delivery controller 41 controls paperdelivery according to the result of inspection by the scanner controller32 of the reader 30. Thus, the user can get a pile of sheets of paper inthe paper delivery tray.

<Example of the Internal Configuration of the Image Forming Device>

Next, an example of the internal configuration of the image formingdevice 1 will be described.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram which shows an example of theinternal configuration of the image forming device 1.

The image forming device 1 includes an image input section 121, acontroller 122, an inspection result report generator 124, a storage125, an image inspection section 126, the inspection result reportoutput section 127, an image forming section 128, and an image reader129. The functions of these components are outlined below, referring toFIG. 4.

The image input section 121 transfers the image received from thecontroller 600 shown in FIG. 3 to the controller 122. Also, the imageinput section 121 receives an instruction to switch to the productionprinting mode or proof mode or an instruction to inspect an image or thelike from the controller 600 or the information terminal 50. In theproduction printing mode, production printing is performed in which theimage forming device 1 prints an image on a sheet of paper according tothe original image. In the production printing mode, the read image fromeach printed sheet is checked for a stain, scratch or the like.

On the other hand, in the proof mode, processing is performed so thatthe read image generated by reading the sheet first printed by the imageforming device 1 subjected to calibration setup alteration, etc. is usedas a proofing image (hereinafter called “reference image”). The time togenerate a reference image in the proof mode is, for example, beforeproduction printing is started. Generally, the image printed on a sheetby the image forming device 1 in the proof mode is visually checked bythe user to determine whether it is normal or not, and if it is normal,the read image from that sheet is used as a reference image. After that,a read image is inspected by comparison with the reference image.

Alternatively, the image obtained by processing the original image by aRIP (Raster Image Processor) may be used as a reference image.

The controller 122 performs various control tasks which include issuanceof an image input instruction, an image formation instruction, and animage inspection instruction, control of recovery printing, and issuanceof an instruction to store an image or page information in the storage125, an instruction to generate an inspection result report, and aninstruction to output an inspection result report. When the controller122 controls recovery printing, it issues an instruction to performrecovery printing not only for the page of the read image determined asabnormal by the image inspection section 126, but also for thesubsequent pages of the images formed after that page or the pages underconveyance.

The inspection result report generator 124 generates an inspectionresult report according to the read image generated by the image reader129 reading a sheet, and the page information of the job. The pageinformation of the job will be described later referring to FIG. 7.

The storage 125 stores a read image, page information of a job, aninspection result report and so on.

The image inspection section 126 inspects a read image according to aninstruction from the controller 122. The image inspection section 126outputs an inspection result which takes an image determined not to havean abnormality as a normal image and a read image determined to have anabnormality as an abnormal image A normal image is, for example, a readimage which does not contain an abnormality such as a stain. An abnormalimage is, for example, a read image which contains an abnormality suchas a stain.

The inspection result report output section 127 displays the inspectionresult report generated by the inspection result report generator 124 onthe operation display 400. The operation display 400 includes hardwarekeys provided as physical devices and a touch panel display. The touchpanel display shows software keys (operation object images) as keysreproduced by software. The user can control the image forming device 1in various ways by touching the hardware keys or software keys of theoperation display 400. An inspection result report appears on the touchpanel display (screen) of the operation display 400. The inspectionresult report will be described in detail later, referring to FIG. 8 andsubsequent figures.

The inspection result report output section 127 may instruct the imageforming section 128 to print an inspection result report. If that is thecase, the inspection result report is printed on paper.

The inspection result report output section 127 includes an abnormalimage output instructing part 127 a to issue an instruction to displayan abnormal image and an inspection level setting part 127 b to set aninspection level. The abnormal image output instructing part 127 a andthe inspection level setting part 127 b operate according to input fromoperation object images which appear on the same screen as theinspection result report and accept an instruction from the user.

The abnormal image output instructing part 127 a has the function toinstruct the controller 122 to display an abnormal image. The abnormalimage output instructing part 127 a is activated by touching (pressing)the ABNORMAL IMAGE button 404 or ABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISON button 403shown in FIG. 9 which will be described later. For example, when theABNORMAL IMAGE button 404 is pressed, only an abnormal image appears inthe inspection result report and when the ABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISONbutton 403 is pressed, a normal image and an abnormal image appear sideby side in the inspection result report.

The inspection level setting part 127 b adjusts the inspection level(inspection severity) at which the image inspection section 126 inspectsa read image. The inspection level setting part 127 b is activated, forexample, by touching (pressing) the ADJUST button 415 shown in FIGS. 10to 12 which will be described later. When the ADJUST button 415 ispressed, the screen showing an inspection result report is changed to ascreen on which the inspection level can be set. On the changed screen,level buttons to enable setting of an inspection level appear asoperation object images which accept an instruction operation. Theinspection level setting can be altered by the user touching one of theoperation object images.

The image forming section 128 forms an image on a sheet of paperaccording to an instruction from the controller 122 and outputs thesheet on which the image has been formed.

The image reader 129 reads the sheet sent from the image forming section128 and outputs the generated read image. The read image is stored, forexample, in the storage 125.

The function of the image input section 121 is implemented, for example,by the DRAM control IC 107 of the management section 100 shown in FIG.3. The functions of the controller 122, inspection result reportgenerator 124, storage 125, image inspection section 126, and inspectionresult report output section 127 are implemented, for example, by theimage control CPU 101 of the management section 100. The function of theimage forming section 128 is implemented, for example, by the printer500. The function of the image reader 129 is implemented, for example,by the reader 30.

<Example of Operation of the Components of the Image Forming Device>

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram which shows an example of variouscomponents of the image forming device 1. The functional blocks shown inFIG. 5 are the same as the functional blocks shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 5illustrates how each functional block is linked to other functionalblocks in relation to the processing steps (1) to (19) indicated in thefigure.

(1) First, an image is entered from the image input section 121 into thecontroller 122. The image here includes job information and a job as anoriginal image. The image has been received from the controller 600 bythe image input section 121. Then, the controller 122 starts the job. Asthe job is started, the controller 122 compresses the image receivedfrom the image input section 121 using the compression IC 108 and storesit in the compression memory 111. Then, the controller 122 decompressesthe compressed image stored in the compression memory 111 using thedecompression IC 109 and stores the decompressed image in a first pagememory 112 a.(2) Next, the controller 122 instructs the image forming section 128 toform an image. At this time, the image forming section 128 reads theoriginal image from the first page memory 112 a. Upon reception of theinstruction from the controller 122, the image forming section 128performs the printing process to form an image on a sheet. The sheetwith the image formed is conveyed from the main unit 10 to the reader30.(3) After output of the sheet is completed, the image forming section128 notifies the controller 122 of completion of output of the sheetwith the image formed.(4) Next, the controller 122 instructs the image reader 129 to read theimage.(5) The image reader 129 reads the image formed on the sheet conveyedfrom the main unit 10 and stores the read image in a second page memory112 b. Then, the image reader 129 notifies the controller 122 ofcompletion of reading.(6) Next, the controller 122 instructs the image inspection section 126to inspect the image. At this time, the image inspection section 126reads the read image from the second page memory 112 b.(7) The image inspection section 126 inspects each sheet to checkwhether the read image read from the second page memory 112 b has anabnormality such as a stain or not. If the image inspection section 126determines that the read image has an abnormality, it notifies thecontroller 122 of the inspection result including information on wherethe abnormality has been detected. If the image inspection section 126determines that the read image does not have an abnormality, it notifiesthe controller 122 of the inspection result that no abnormality has beendetected. Notified of the inspection result, the controller 122calculates the number of pages which require recovery printing,according to the sheet on which the abnormality has been detected.(8) Next, the controller 122 stores the read image inspected by theimage inspection section 126, in the storage 125 along with the pageinformation of the job.(9) The controller 122 reads the read image inspected by the imageinspection section 126 and the page information of the job from thestorage 125 and writes them in a third page memory 112 c.(10) The controller 122 instructs the inspection result report generator124 to generate an inspection result report. The inspection resultreport generator 124 generates inspection result reports for all thepages included in the job. At this time, the inspection result reportgenerator 124 reads the read image inspected by the image inspectionsection 126 and the page information from the third page memory 112 c.(11) The inspection result report generator 124 stores the inspectionresult report in the storage 125.(12) The inspection result report generator 124 notifies the controller122 of completion of generation of the inspection result report.(13) The controller 122 writes the inspection result report read fromthe storage 125 in a report reading memory 113.(14) The controller 122 instructs the inspection result report outputsection 127 to display the inspection result report including the normalimage.(15) The inspection result report output section 127 reads theinspection result report stored in the report reading memory 113 anddisplays the normal image.

Next, the case that the abnormal image output instructing part 127 aissues an instruction to display an abnormal image will be described.The instruction is issued from the abnormal image output instructingpart 127 a by the user touching (pressing) an operation object image onthe inspection result report output section 127. The following twobuttons are available as operation object images: the ABNORMAL IMAGECOMPARISON button 403 and the ABNORMAL IMAGE button 404 which will bedescribed later, referring to FIG. 9.

(16) The abnormal image output instructing part 127 a instructs thecontroller 122 to display an abnormal image.(17) When the ABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISON button 403 of the abnormal imageoutput instructing part 127 a is pressed, the controller 122 issues aninstruction to display a normal image and a corresponding abnormalimage. When the ABNORMAL IMAGE button 404 of the abnormal image outputinstructing part 127 a is pressed, the controller 122 instructs theinspection result report output section 127 to display the abnormalimage.(18) The inspection result report output section 127 reads theinspection result report stored in the report reading memory 113 anddisplays only the abnormal image or both the normal image and abnormalimage side by side according to the instruction.

Next, adjustment of the inspection level of the image inspection section126 will be described.

(19) The inspection level setting part 127 b instructs the controller122 to switch to the inspection level setting screen. The instruction isissued from the inspection level setting part 127 b by the user touching(pressing) an operation object image on the inspection result reportoutput section 127. The operation object images which represent thelevel buttons are shown in FIG. 13 which will be described later. Thecontroller 122 causes the inspection level setting screen to appear(described later referring to FIG. 13).

Next, recovery printing as instructed by the controller 122 will bedescribed.

If a read image is determined as abnormal, the controller 122 issues aninstruction to perform recovery printing of the page having the imagecorresponding to the read image. Therefore, the controller 122 notifiesthe controller 600 of information on the read image for recoveryprinting and instructs the image forming section 128 to perform recoveryprinting. The image forming section 128 performs recovery printingaccording to the information on the read image for recovery printing ascalculated by the controller 122. The sheets on which recovery printinghas been made are also read by the image reader 129 and inspected by theimage inspection section 126 and an inspection result report isgenerated and outputted as necessary.

<Example of Image Inspection by the Image Inspection Section>

FIG. 6 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of imageinspection which is made by the image inspection section 126.

Here, an example that ten page images are formed on sheets will beexplained. In FIG. 6, the arrows indicate that the image inspectionsection 126 detects a read image as abnormal. The page of a read imagedetermined as abnormal by the image inspection section 126 is markedwith the wording “ABNORMALITY DETERMINATION”.

Each rectangular frame in FIG. 6 represents a sheet on which an imagehas been formed by the image forming section 128 or a sheet beingconveyed through the conveying path in the image forming device 1 beforeimage formation. The number in each frame represents which page imagehas been formed or is to be formed. This example assumes that ten pagesof images are formed on sheets. In the explanation below, the read imageof the first page is called “read image 1”. Similarly, the read imagesof the second to tenth pages are called “read image 2” to “read image10”.

(1) First, it is assumed that read images 1 to 4 are determined by theimage inspection section 126 not to have an abnormality. Therefore, thesheets on which the first to fourth page images have been formed aredelivered to the usual paper delivery tray (normal paper delivery tray).In the explanation below, when the image inspection section 126 inspectsa read image and determines it not to have an abnormality, thedetermination is called “normality determination”.(2) It is assumed that after the four sheets for the first to fourthpages are delivered to the normal paper delivery tray, the read image 5of the fifth page is determined to have an abnormality by the imageinspection section 126. In the explanation below, when the imageinspection section 126 inspects a read image and determines it to havean abnormality, the determination is called “abnormality determination”.When the read image 5 of the fifth page is determined as abnormal, thesheets for the sixth to ninth pages after the fifth page determined asabnormal already have images or have been conveyed to the conveying pathin the image forming device 1. If the read images of the sixth to ninthpages are determined as normal, in the ordinary course of events thesheets having the images of the sixth to ninth pages will be deliveredto the normal paper delivery tray. After that, if recovery printing ofthe fifth page image is performed and the read image 5 of the fifth pageis determined as normal, the sheet having the fifth page image will bedelivered after the sheets having the sixth to ninth page images whichhave already been delivered to the normal paper delivery tray. If so,the sheets will not be piled in page numerical order. On the other hand,in the present embodiment, for the above reason, the sheets alreadyhaving the sixth to ninth page images or the sheets being conveyedthrough the conveying path in the image forming device 1 for the sixthto ninth page images are treated as spoilage. Therefore, the sheetshaving the sixth to ninth page images are delivered to the abnormalpaper delivery tray along with the sheet having the fifth page imagedetermined as abnormal.(3) Next, the image forming device 1 starts recovery printing of thefifth and subsequent page images according to an instruction from thecontroller 122. In FIG. 6, it is assumed that the read image 5 is againdetermined as abnormal by the image inspection section 126. In thiscase, the sheets having the sixth to ninth page images formed byrecovery printing are delivered to the abnormal paper delivery trayalong with the sheet having the fifth page image determined as abnormal.(4) Next, the image forming device 1 again starts recovery printing ofthe fifth page image according to the instruction from the controller122. Then, it is assumed that the image inspection section 126determines the read image 8 as abnormal. In this case, the sheets havingthe fifth to seventh page images determined as normal are delivered tothe normal paper delivery tray and the sheet having the eighth pageimage determined as abnormal and the sheets already having the ninth andtenth page images or the sheets being conveyed through the conveyingpath in the image forming device 1 for the ninth and tenth page imagesare delivered to the abnormal paper delivery tray.(5) Next, the image forming device 1 starts recovery printing of theeighth and subsequent page images according to an instruction from thecontroller 122. Then, the image inspection section 126 determines theread images 8 to 10 as normal. The sheets having the eighth to tenthpage images determined as normal are delivered to the normal paperdelivery tray. The job for the ten pages is thus finished.

In the present embodiment, in the job, after recovery printing of animage corresponding to a read image determined as abnormal by the imageinspection section 126 is performed, a read image which is generated bythe image reader 129 and determined as normal by the image inspectionsection 126 is called a normal image. Also, in executing the same job asthe job executed in the past, if an image formed on a sheet is read bythe image reader 129 and the read image is determined as normal by theimage inspection section 126, the read image is also called a normalimage.

<Example of Storage of the Inspection Results of Read Images by theImage Inspection Section>

FIG. 7 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of storage ofthe inspection results of read images by the image inspection section126. The figure illustrates how the inspection results of the readimages 1 to 10 (FIG. 6) inspected by the image inspection section 126are stored in the storage 125.

For example, the result of inspection by the image inspection section126 contains job information and page information of each page. Forexample, the page information of each page contains a read imagegenerated by the image reader 129 reading a sheet. The page informationincludes normal image page information concerning a normal image andabnormal image page information concerning an abnormal image.

The job information at least holds the page information address of theread image 1 determined as normal by the image inspection section 126.The page information of the read image 1 determined as normal is callednormal image page information 1. Similarly, the page information of theread images 2 to 10 determined as normal is called normal image pageinformation 2 to 10.

Each piece of normal image page information (for example, normal imagepage information 1) at least holds the address of each read image (forexample, read image 1) in the storage 125 which stores it. Furthermore,each piece of normal image page information (for example, normal imagepage information 1) holds the address of the page information of thenext page read image determined as normal (for example, normal imagepage information 2).

The normal image page information of a page including a normal image andan abnormal image holds the address of abnormal image page informationof the read image determined as abnormal by the image inspection section126. For example, page information of read image 1 determined asabnormal is called abnormal image page information 1. Similarly, pageinformation of read images 2 to 10 determined as abnormal is calledabnormal image page information 2 to 10. FIG. 7 illustrates that twopieces of abnormal image page information 5 are stored in page 5, andone piece of abnormal image page information 8 is stored in page 8.

Each piece of abnormal image page information (for example, abnormalimage page information 5) holds the address of each read image (forexample, read image 5) in the storage 125. Furthermore, each piece ofabnormal image page information (for example, abnormal image pageinformation 5) also holds the address of the page information of theread image determined as abnormal as a result of recovery printing.

Each piece of abnormal image page information at least holds informationon the number of detected abnormalities, type of abnormality, and thecoordinates of abnormal spots. The coordinates of an abnormal spot areexpressed by the coordinates of the left upper and right lower cornersof a rectangular frame which surrounds the abnormal spot. Alternatively,the coordinates of the center of the rectangular frame may be taken asthe coordinates of the abnormal spot.

If the read image of a page was determined as abnormal before beingdetermined as normal, the controller 122 links the abnormal image pageinformation after the normal image page information and stores thenormal image page information and abnormal image page information in thestorage 125.

<Example of the Composition of an Inspection Result Report>

FIG. 8 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of thecomposition of an inspection result report.

The inspection result report is a data file which is stored in thestorage 125 for each executed job according to the job information shownin FIG. 7. In this specification, an inspection result report as a datafile which is stored in the storage 125 and an inspection result reportwhich is displayed on a screen or the like by the inspection resultreport output section 127 are explained.

The inspection result report which is stored in the storage 125 containsa read image and the number of detected abnormalities, type ofabnormality, the coordinates of abnormal spots and so on which arestored as page information. The inspection result report generator 124generates an inspection result report according to an instruction fromthe controller 122 and stores the inspection result report in thestorage 125.

The inspection result report, in which the normal image page informationof the first to tenth pages, two pieces of abnormal image pageinformation of the fifth page, and one piece of abnormal image pageinformation of the eighth page as shown in FIG. 7 are linked, is storedin the storage 125. The inspection result report contains a file headerand a report page for each page. The report page for each page includespage information and an image.

The file header at least holds information such as the number of pagesof a job (the number of normal image pages) and the total number ofpages (the total number of pages including abnormal images).

In the case of the read image 1, normal image page information 1 of theread image 1 determined as normal by the image inspection section 126 isstored in a report page. Similarly, normal image page information 2 to10 of the read images 2 to 10 determined as normal by the imageinspection section 126 are stored in report pages.

The read images 5 and 8 include the read images generated by reading theimages formed on the sheets of the pages for which recovery printing hasbeen performed as a result of abnormality determination.

In the case of the read image 5, abnormal image page information 5 ofthe read image 5 determined as abnormal by the image inspection section126 is stored in a report page. Similarly, abnormal image pageinformation 8 of the read image 8 determined as abnormal by the imageinspection section 126 is stored in a report page.

The normal image of the read image 1 stored in the report page is calledPage 1 (normal image). Similarly, the normal images of the read images 2to 10 stored in the report pages are called Page 2 (normal image) toPage 10 (normal image), respectively.

The abnormal image of the read image 5 stored in the report page iscalled Page 5 (abnormal image). Similarly, the abnormal image of theread image 8 stored in the report page is called Page 8 (abnormalimage).

Each piece of page information for a read image contains normality orabnormality determination, read image size (vertical, horizontal), readimage resolution, and read image tone.

Furthermore, if a read image is determined as abnormal, the pageinformation contains abnormal image link information, the number ofdetected abnormalities, type of abnormality, and the coordinates of anabnormal spot. If the read image of the page expressed by the pageinformation is determined as abnormal, the abnormal image linkinformation is expressed as the address of the abnormal image in thestorage 125 which stores it. The address is a relative value calculatedwith respect to address 0 allocated to the file header at the top of theinspection result report, which represents the logical position of eachreport page stored in the inspection result report.

For example, if the read image 5 was determined as abnormal before beingdetermined as normal, normal image page information 5 and abnormal imagepage information 5 are linked so that the report page for the abnormalimage is positioned after the report page for the normal image. In thefigure, arrow R1 indicates the direction from the normal image pageinformation 5 of the report page containing Page 5 (normal image) to theabnormal image page information 5 of the report page containing Page 5(abnormal image) as the read image first determined as abnormal. Thearrow R1 suggests that an address as abnormal image link information isstored.

Arrow R2 also suggests that an address as abnormal image linkinformation is stored. The arrow R2 indicates the direction from theabnormal image page information 5 of the report page containing Page 5(abnormal image) as the read image determined as abnormal for the firsttime to the abnormal image page information 5 of the report pagecontaining Page 5 (abnormal image) as the read image determined asabnormal for the second time.

Similarly, arrow R3 also suggests that an address as abnormal image linkinformation is stored. The arrow R3 indicates the direction from theabnormal image page information 8 of the report page containing Page 8(normal image) to the abnormal image page information 8 of the reportpage containing Page 8 (abnormal image) as the read image determined asabnormal for the first time.

Thus, if a read image is determined as normal by the image inspectionsection 126, the address of a read image which is on the same page asthe normal read image and was previously determined as abnormal iscontained in the page information. However, if no read image previouslydetermined as abnormal is stored, the page information contains “noimage” information.

<Display Examples of Inspection Result Reports>

Next, display examples of inspection result reports will be describedreferring to FIGS. 9 to 15.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory drawing which shows a display example of aninspection result report.

FIG. 9 shows an example of an inspection result report generated fromthe read image 5 detected as abnormal as shown in FIG. 6 which isdisplayed on the screen of the operation display 400 (inspection resultreport output section 127). First, an example of a normal image 407shown in an inspection result report will be explained.

In this inspection result report, “Image00005” is selected and thenormal image 407 of the read image 5 corresponding to “Image00005” isdisplayed. On the left area of the screen of the operation display 400,selector tabs are provided to select a page among the pages of readimages 1 to 10 to be displayed in an inspection result report. Theselector tabs are marked with the filenames of the inspection resultreports “Image00001” to “Image00010” so that the inspection resultreport for each page can be selected.

In the inspection result report shown in FIG. 9, the normal image 407 ofthe read image 5 determined as normal is shown. Under the normal image407, buttons 406 for enlargement and reduction are provided to enablethe user to enlarge or reduce the normal image 407. For example, whenthe “+” button 406 is pressed, the normal image 407 is displayed inenlarged form and when the “−” button 406 is pressed, the normal image407 is displayed in reduced form. At the bottom of the inspection resultreport, an END button 405 is provided to enable the user to give aninstruction to end the display of the inspection result report. When theuser presses the END button 405, the display of the inspection resultreport is ended.

The abnormal image output instructing part 127 a shown in FIG. 4 issuesan instruction to the controller 122 to display an abnormal imagedepending on whether the ABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISON button 403 or theABNORMAL IMAGE button 404 at the bottom of the inspection result reportis pressed.

The ABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISON button 403 is used by the user to instructthe inspection result report output section 127 to display a normalimage and an abnormal image side by side. When the user presses theABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISON button 403, the normal image 407 and abnormalimage 408 are displayed side by side in the inspection result reportshown in FIG. 9 (see FIG. 11 which will be described later).

The ABNORMAL IMAGE button 404 is used by the user to instruct theinspection result report output section 127 to display an abnormalimage. When the user presses the ABNORMAL IMAGE button 404, only theabnormal image 408 is displayed in the inspection result report as shownin FIG. 9 (see FIG. 10 which will be described later).

Although FIG. 9 shows an example of the display on the operation display400 of the image forming device 1, the display of a report is notlimited to the operation display 400 but a report may be displayed onthe external PC, tablet terminal or the like connected to the network.

The normal image 407 shown in FIG. 9 is displayed so that the tree isvertically oriented; however, the tree may be horizontally oriented onthe display. Therefore, an operation object image which represents arotation button (not shown) or the like may be added. The horizontallyoriented normal image 407 is displayed larger than the verticallyoriented normal image 407 so that the normal image 407 can be checkedmore easily.

<Example of an Inspection Result Report Displaying an Abnormal Image>

FIG. 10 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of aninspection result report which displays an abnormal image 408. When theuser presses the ABNORMAL IMAGE button 404 in the inspection resultreport displaying the normal image 407 shown in FIG. 9, the inspectionresult report as shown in FIG. 10 appears.

Here, the inspection result report output section 127 emphasizes theabnormal spot detected as abnormal by the image inspection section 126in the abnormal image 408. For example, an abnormality such as a stainor streak is enclosed by a red circle (an example of the first mode) toemphasize it. As shown in FIG. 10, the abnormal image 408 has a stain409 and a white streak 410 which are enclosed by red circles 411 and 412respectively.

At the bottom of the inspection result report, the buttons 406 forenlargement and reduction are provided to enlarge or reduce the abnormalimage 408. When the “+” button 406 is pressed, the abnormal image 408 isdisplayed in enlarged form and when the “−” button 406 is pressed, theabnormal image 408 is displayed in reduced form.

At the bottom of the inspection result report, a BACK button 416 isprovided to return the display on the screen to the original display.When the BACK button 416 is pressed, the display showing only the normalimage 407 in FIG. 9 is restored. By switching the display from theabnormal image 408 to the normal image 407, the abnormal spots can beeasily checked.

Alternatively, an operation object image to rotate the abnormal image408 in the same manner as for the normal image 407 may be provided. Whenthe abnormal image 408 is horizontally displayed, it is larger than whenvertically displayed. When the user presses the BACK button 416, thehorizontally oriented abnormal image 408 in enlarged form is changed tothe horizontally oriented normal image 407 in enlarged form. On theother hand, when the user presses the ABNORMAL IMAGE button 404, thenormal image is changed to the horizontally oriented abnormal image 408in enlarged form. Since the normal image 407 and abnormal image 408 arehorizontally oriented in enlarged form in this way, the user can easilycheck the abnormal spots.

Furthermore, a page forward button 413, a page backward button 414, andan ADJUST button 415 are shown at the bottom of the inspection resultreport. The page forward button 413 and page backward button 414 will bedescribed later referring to FIG. 11. The ADJUST button 415 will bedescribed later referring to FIG. 13.

<Example of an Inspection Result Report Enabling Comparison Between aNormal Image and an Abnormal Image>

FIG. 11 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of aninspection result report which displays the normal image 407 andabnormal image 408 in a comparable manner. When the user presses theABNORMAL

IMAGE COMPARISON button 403 in the inspection result report displayingthe normal image 407 as shown in FIG. 9, the inspection result reportshown in FIG. 11 appears.

When the ABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISON button 403 is pressed, the controller122 instructs the inspection result report output section 127 to displaythe normal image 407 and abnormal image 408 side by side. According tothis instruction, the inspection result report output section 127displays the normal image 407 and abnormal image 408 side by side.Consequently, the user can easily recognize the type of abnormality andabnormal spots which have caused the abnormality determination made bythe image inspection section 126.

In some cases, one read image is linked to a plurality of abnormalimages because the image inspection section 126 has determined it asabnormal several times. If that is the case, the inspection resultreport output section 127 can display the next page or previous pageonly for the abnormal images, depending on whether the user presses thepage forward button 413 or page backward button 414.

For example, the read image 5 of the fifth page shown in FIG. 6 wasdetermined as abnormal twice by the image inspection section 126.Therefore, when the page forward button 413 is pressed, the abnormalimage 408 determined as abnormal for the second time is displayed.Conversely, when the page backward button 414 is pressed, the abnormalimage 408 determined as abnormal for the first time is displayed.

The enlargement and reduction buttons 406 located under the normal image407 and abnormal image 408 are used to enlarge or reduce both the normalimage 407 and abnormal image 408 at the same scale ratio.

<Example of an Inspection Result Report Displaying a Normal Image and anAbnormal Image in Enlarged Form in a Comparable Manner>

FIG. 12 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of aninspection result report which displays the normal image 407 andabnormal image 408 in enlarged form in a comparable manner. Since theuser has pressed the vicinity of the area enclosed by the red circle 411in the inspection result report shown in FIG. 11, the vicinity of thearea in the image is displayed in enlarged form in the inspection resultreport.

The inspection result report output section 127 displays both an areaincluding an abnormality spot in the abnormal image 408 and an areacorresponding to the abnormality spot in the normal image 407 inenlarged form. Since the abnormal spot in the abnormal image 408 isdisplayed in enlarged form along with the corresponding spot in thenormal image 407, the user can easily recognize the type of abnormalityand abnormal spot which have caused the abnormality determination by theimage inspection section 126.

<Display Example of the Inspection Level Setting Screen>

FIG. 13 is an explanatory drawing which shows a display example of theinspection level setting screen. When the user presses the ADJUST button415 in the inspection result report shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, theinspection level setting screen appears to set the inspection level forthe image inspection section 126. The ADJUST button 415 is an example ofan operation object image which accepts an instruction from the user.

The inspection level setting part 127 b receives an input through theADJUST button 415 displayed in the inspection result report and sets aninspection level in the controller 122. When the ADJUST button 415 ispressed, the inspection level setting screen appears as shown in FIG.13. The user can adjust the inspection level for the image inspectionsection 126 through the inspection level setting screen. For example, ifthe user checks the abnormal image 408 displayed in the inspectionresult report and considers the inspection level for the imageinspection section 126 too severe, the user can adjust the inspectionlevel through the inspection level setting screen.

As user-adjustable inspection levels, Level 1 to Level 17 are available.If Level 1 is selected, the image inspection section 126 detects theread image as abnormal when the size of a detected stain or scratch is0.1 mm or more. On the other hand, if Level 7 is selected, the imageinspection section 126 detects the read image as abnormal when the sizeof a detected stain or scratch is 3 mm or more. Thus, when theinspection level number is smaller, the image inspection section 126detects a smaller stain or scratch as abnormal. Therefore, the user canadjust the inspection level for the image inspection section 126 bypressing a level button among the Level 1 to Level 7 buttons.

<Example of an Emphasized Abnormal Spot>

FIG. 14 is an explanatory drawing which shows an example of anemphasized abnormal spot. Next, an explanation will be given of anexample of the inspection result report which appears after the userpresses the ABNORMAL IMAGE button 404 with the normal image 407displayed as shown in FIG. 9.

If the image inspection section 126 determines the same page of a readimage as abnormal several times for the same reason, the inspectionresult report output section 127 displays the abnormal spot includingthe abnormality, which is emphasized in a different mode from the modeshown in FIG. 10, for example, by red double circles (an example of thesecond mode). For example, assuming that one spot in the read image 5has been determined as abnormal several times, the stain 409 is enclosedby red double circle 417 different from the red circle 411 in FIG. 10for emphasis. Consequently, the user can easily recognize that theabnormality has occurred several times in the same position of the readimage.

<Display Example of a Normal Image>

FIG. 15 is an explanatory drawing which shows a display example of anormal image. Next, an inspection result report which displays thenormal image 407 not linked to the abnormal image 408 will be explained.

When the normal image 407 not linked to the abnormal image 408 isdisplayed in an inspection result report, the inspection result reportoutput section 127 does not show the ABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISON button403 and ABNORMAL IMAGE button 404. This inspection result report showsthe normal image 407 not linked to the abnormal image 408, theenlargement and reduction buttons 406 to enlarge and reduce the normalimage 407, and the END button 405. When the user presses the END button405, the inspection result report output section 127 ends the display ofthe inspection result report.

<Display Example of a Comparison Report>

FIGS. 16A to 16C are explanatory drawings which show a display exampleof a comparison report.

In an inspection result report, inspection results can be summarized ina mode other than the inspection result report modes shown in FIGS. 9 to12. The comparison reports shown in FIGS. 16A to 16C are examples ofinspection result reports, which are generated, for example, aselectronic files such as PDF (Portable Document Format) files. If aninspection result report is generated as an electronic file, the reportcan be viewed on the external PC or the like using a USB (UniversalSerial Bus) or the like. Next, these reports will be explained using thejob shown in FIG. 6.

FIG. 16A shows a report generated by the inspection result reportgenerator 124 collecting only normal images. This report includes thenormal images of the first to fourth pages determined as normal by theimage inspection section 126 before recovery printing, the normal imagesof the fifth to seventh pages determined as normal in the secondrecovery printing, and the normal images of the eighth to tenth pagesdetermined as normal in the third recovery printing.

FIG. 16B shows a report generated by the inspection result reportgenerator 124 collecting only abnormal images. FIG. 16B includes twoabnormal images of the fifth page determined as abnormal and oneabnormal image of the eighth page.

FIG. 16C shows a report generated by the inspection result reportgenerator 124 collecting abnormal images and normal images linked to theabnormal images. This report is generated so that an abnormal image anda normal image linked to the abnormal image are arranged side by side.For example, the normal image linked to the read image of the fifth pageand the abnormal image determined as abnormal for the first time areshown side by side. Also, the normal image linked to the read image 5 ofthe fifth page and the abnormal image determined as abnormal for thesecond time are shown side by side. Also, the normal image linked to theread image 8 of the eighth page and the abnormal image are shown side byside. In these abnormal images, the red circles 411 and 412, etc. whichemphasize the abnormal spots as explained referring to FIG. 10 may beadded.

In the report shown in FIG. 16C, two images (normal image and abnormalimage) are shown. The size of the normal and abnormal images in thereport shown in FIG. 16C can be reduced to half so that the report sizeis A4. However, if the normal image and abnormal image whose originalsize is A4 are reduced in size, the user may hardly discern the smalldifference between the normal and abnormal images. Therefore, theinspection result report generator 124 generates an inspection resultreport in which the normal and abnormal images are arranged side byside, keeping the size of the images the same as the read image size. Ifthe size of the normal and abnormal images is A4, preferably the size ofthe report itself should be A3 or larger so that the size of the normaland abnormal image sizes is unchanged.

<Example of Image Inspection of Collated Sets of Printed Sheets>

FIGS. 17A to 17C are explanatory drawings which show an example of imageinspection of collated sets of printed sheets. In this example, it isassumed that the image forming device 1 executes a job to print imageson sheets for a plurality of collated sets. In execution of the job, thefirst collated set of sheets printed by the image forming device 1 iscalled “the first set” and a subsequent set of sheets printed by theimage forming device 1 is called “the N-th set”. FIG. 17A shows thesheets in the first set and FIG. 17B shows the sheets in the N-th set.The read images generated from each set of sheets are inspected by theimage inspection section 126. Each set includes ten pages.

In the first set shown in FIG. 17A, read images 1 to 6 are determined asnormal by the image inspection section 126. The sheets having the firstto sixth page images are delivered to the usual paper delivery tray(normal paper delivery tray). However, the read image 7 is determined asabnormal by the image inspection section 126, so the sheet having theseventh page image determined as abnormal and the sheets having theeighth to tenth page images are treated as spoilage and delivered to theabnormal paper delivery tray. Then, the image forming device 1 startsrecovery printing for the seventh and subsequent pages. Then, the readimages 7 to 10 are determined as normal by the image inspection section126 and printing of the first set is thus completed.

In the N-th set shown in FIG. 17B, read images 1 to 4 are determined asnormal by the image inspection section 126. Here, the printing result ofeach page in the N-th set and the inspection result are the same asshown in FIG. 6 and detailed description thereof is omitted.

In the upper part of FIG. 17C, the normal read images determined asnormal in the first set are shown in line. In the lower part of FIG.17C, the abnormal read images determined as abnormal in the N-th set areshown in line. The abnormal images in the N-th set and the correspondingnormal images in the first set are linked on a page-by-page basis andstored in the storage 125. In this example, the normal images of thefifth and eighth pages in the first set and the abnormal images in theN-th set are linked and stored in the storage 125.

As mentioned above, even from the printed sheets in different collatedsets, the normal image and abnormal image of a page can be linked andstored in the storage 125. The inspection result report output section127 can output the normal image and abnormal image of a page even fromdifferent collated sets in an inspection result report.

<Example of Color Inspection of Read Images>

FIGS. 18A to 18C are explanatory drawings which show an example of colorinspection of read images, in which a reference image, a normal image,and an abnormal image for each page are linked and stored in the storage125. When the image inspection section 126 inspects the color of a readimage, the reference image generated in the proof mode from the readimage by the image reader 129 is linked to the normal image pageinformation and stored.

FIG. 18A shows an example of reference images for ten pages which aregenerated in the proof mode from read images. For example, referenceimages 1 to 10 corresponding to the read images 1 to 10 of the first totenth pages are stored in the storage 125.

FIG. 18B shows an example of the read images of sheets printed in theproduction printing mode and the sheets treated as spoilage. Here, theprinting result of each page and the inspection result are the same asshown in FIG. 6 and detailed description thereof is omitted.

FIG. 18C shows that the inspection result report generator 124 links areference image, a normal image, and an abnormal image for each page andstores the images in the storage 125. For job information specific toeach job, the reference images, normal images, and abnormal images arestored in page numerical order.

The job information holds the address of normal image page informationon the read images determined as normal. Each piece of normal image pageinformation (for example, normal image page information 1) holds theaddress of each piece of reference image page information (for example,reference image page information 1) in the storage 125. Therefore, theinspection result report output section 127 can display an inspectionresult report in which a reference image and a read image are arrangedside by side in a comparable manner.

The reference image can also be used for inspection by the imageinspection section 126 in reprinting. In some cases, the setup of theimage forming device 1 at the time of storage of the reference image isdifferent from the setup of the image forming device 1 at the time ofreprinting due to recalibration, etc. For this reason, the color ofimages reprinted by the image forming device 1 after alteration of thesetup may be different from the color of the reference image. If theinspection items of the image inspection section 126 include color, theuser can visually check the color difference easily when the referenceimage and read image are displayed in a comparable manner. Therefore,the user can press the ABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISON button 403 so that theread image and reference image appear in the inspection result report.

<Example of the Process to Link Normal Image Page Information andAbnormal Image Page Information>

Next, among various processes which are performed by the image formingdevice 1, the process to link normal image page information and abnormalimage page information and the process to generate report pages will bedescribed sequentially referring to FIGS. 19 and 20.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart which shows an example of the process to linknormal image page information and abnormal image page information.

First, the controller 122 receives a job from the image input section121. Then, the controller 122 starts the job. As the job is started, thecontroller 122 compresses the image data received from the image inputsection 121 using the compression IC 108 and stores the compressed datain the compression memory 111. Then, the controller 122 decompresses thecompressed image stored in the compression memory 111 using thedecompression IC 109 and stores the decompressed image in the first pagememory 112 a (S1).

Next, the controller 122 supplies sheets to the image forming section128 from a paper feed tray or the large capacity paper feeder 20 (S2).

Next, the controller 122 instructs the image forming section 128 to forman image. Upon reception of the instruction from the controller 122, theimage forming section 128 performs the printing process to form theimage read from the first page memory 112 a on a sheet (S3). After theprinted sheet is delivered to the reader 30, the image forming section128 notifies the controller 122 of completion of delivery of the printedsheet.

Next, the image reader 129 reads the image formed on the sheet conveyedfrom the main unit 10 and stores the read image in the second pagememory 112 b (S4). Then, the image reader 129 notifies the controller122 of completion of reading.

Next, the controller 122 instructs the image inspection section 126 toinspect the read image. At this time, the image inspection section 126inspects the read image read from the second page memory 112 b (S5).Then, if the image inspection section 126 determines that the read imagedoes not have an abnormality, it notifies the controller 122 of theinspection result “normal”. On the other hand, if the image inspectionsection 126 determines that the read image has an abnormality, itnotifies the controller 122 of the inspection result including thedetected abnormal spot.

Next, the controller 122 stores the inspection result of the read imageinspected by the image inspection section 126 in the storage 125 (S6).The controller 122 determines whether the read image has an abnormalityor not, according to the inspection result from the image inspectionsection 126 (S7). If the read image is determined to have an abnormality(YES at S7), the controller 122 stores the address of the read image(abnormal image) in the storage 125 in the abnormal image pageinformation (S8).

On the other hand, if the read image is determined not to have anabnormality (NO at S7), the controller 122 stores the address of theread image (normal image) in the storage 125 in the normal image pageinformation (S9).

Next, the controller 122 determines whether the printing processperformed by the image forming section 128 is recovery printing or not(S10). If the controller 122 determines that the process is recoveryprinting (YES at S10), it links the page information of therecovery-printed image to the page information of the same imagedetermined as abnormal before recovery printing (S11) and goes to StepS12. On the other hand, if the controller 122 determines that theprocess is not recovery printing (NO at S10), it goes to Step S12.

Next, the controller 122 determines whether the inspection result of theimage inspection section 126 concerns the read image from the imageprinted on the last page sheet (S12).

If the controller 122 determines that the inspection result does notconcern the last page (NO at S12), it goes back to Step S2 in order tocontinue the image forming process for the next and subsequent pages,and causes the image forming section 128 to continue the image formingprocess. On the other hand, if the controller 122 determines that theinspection result concerns the last page (YES at S12), this processingsequence is ended. With these steps, the process to link the normalimage page information and abnormal image page information is completed.

<Example of the Process to Generate an Inspection Result Report>

FIG. 20 is a flowchart which shows an example of the process to generatean inspection result report.

First, the controller 122 instructs the inspection result reportgenerator 124 to generate an inspection result report. The inspectionresult report generator 124 creates a file header for an inspectionresult report according to job information (S21). As mentioned above,the file header at least holds information on the number of pages of thejob (the number of normal images) and the total number of pages (thetotal number of pages including abnormal images).

Next, the inspection result report generator 124 generates normal imagepage information as shown in FIG. 8 according to the job information. Asmentioned above, the normal image page information holds the read imagenormality or abnormality determination and read image size (vertical,horizontal). Also, the normal image page information holds informationon read image resolution, read image tone, abnormal image linkage and soon (S22).

The inspection result report generator 124 reads the read image andnormal image page information from the storage 125 (S23) and generates areport page for the normal image according to the read image and normalimage page information (S24).

Next, the inspection result report generator 124 determines whetherthere is information on linkage of the normal image and abnormal imageor not, according to the job information (S25). If the inspection resultreport generator 124 determines that there is no information on linkageto an abnormal image (NO at S25), it goes to Step S30.

On the other hand, if the inspection result report generator 124determines that there is information on linkage to an abnormal image(YES at S25), it generates abnormal image page information according tothe job information (S26). The abnormal image page information holdsinformation on the read image normality or abnormality determination bythe image inspection section 126, read image size (vertical,horizontal), read image resolution, read image tone, abnormal imagelinkage and so on. Also, the abnormal image page information holdsinformation on the number of detected abnormalities, type ofabnormality, and the coordinates of abnormal spots.

Next, the inspection result report generator 124 reads the read imageand abnormal image page information from the storage 125 (S27). Next,the inspection result report generator 124 generates a report pageaccording to the read image and abnormal image page information (S28).This report page is generated after the normal image page informationfor the same page.

Next, the inspection result report generator 124 determines whethergeneration of report pages of all abnormal images for the same page iscompleted or not (S29). If the inspection result report generator 124determines that generation of report pages of all abnormal images forthe same page is not completed (NO at S29), it goes back to Step S26.Then, the inspection result report generator 124 continues generation ofreport pages of other abnormal images.

On the other hand, if the inspection result report generator 124determines that generation of report pages of all abnormal images forthe same page is completed (YES at S29), it determines whethergeneration of report pages of read images for all the pages in the jobis completed or not (S30).

If the inspection result report generator 124 determines that generationof report pages of read images for all the pages in the job is notcompleted (NO at S30), it goes back to Step S22. On the other hand, ifthe inspection result report generator 124 determines that generation ofreport pages of read images for all the pages in the job is completed(YES at S30), the processing sequence is ended. The inspection resultreport is completed by repeating the generation of a report page foreach page as mentioned above.

In the image forming device 1 according to the present embodiment asdescribed so far, the image inspection section 126 inspects the readimage generated by the image reader 129 reading a sheet, and determineswhether each page is normal or abnormal. The image inspection section126 outputs an inspection result of determination of normality orabnormality depending on whether the read image of each page has anabnormality or not. Then, the inspection result report generator 124generates an inspection result report with report pages for each pageaccording to the output inspection result. If the read image of a pagewas determined as abnormal before being determined as normal, theabnormal image and normal image are linked in the report page.Consequently, the inspection result report output section 127 can outputthe inspection result report according to the inspection result reportin a manner to enable comparison.

In the conventional process of generating a defect detection report, aread image (defect-detected image) and a normal image (original image)are formed again on sheets, so another abnormality such as a stain maybe added to the sheet on which the image has been formed. In this case,it is impossible to determine whether the abnormality added to thedefect detection report is the abnormality contained in the originalread image or an abnormality caused by generation of the defectdetection report. In contrast, in the inspection result report accordingto the present embodiment, the normal image and abnormal image aredisplayed side by side by the inspection result report output section127. Therefore, it is different from the defect detection reportdisclosed in Patent Literature 1, which is a report printed by formingthe read image (defect-detected image) and normal image (original image)on sheets again. The inspection result report output section 127 candisplay the abnormal image linked to the normal image in the inspectionresult report in response to a request from the user. Consequently, theuser can check the abnormality contained in the abnormal image andeasily know the page number, etc. of the read image determined asabnormal.

In the inspection result report displayed on the screen, when theABNORMAL IMAGE COMPARISON button 403 is pressed, the normal image andabnormal image are displayed side by side. Since the normal image andabnormal image are displayed in a comparable manner, the user can easilyrecognize a stain or streak in the read image. Furthermore, when theABNORMAL IMAGE button 404 is pressed, the normal image and abnormalimage are switched for display. Therefore, the user can easily recognizean abnormal spot. Furthermore, when the area around the abnormal spot inthe displayed abnormal image is touched, the vicinity of the touchedarea is displayed in enlarged form in the inspection result report, sothe user can easily recognize the cause of abnormality.

Furthermore, since the reference image generated in the proof mode andthe read image can be displayed in a comparable manner, it is easier todetermine whether the color of the read image is normal or not withrespect to the reference image. In other words, when the reference imageand read image are displayed in a comparable manner, the user can makean inspection in consideration of the color of the read image easily.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. Obviously,the invention may be embodied and applied in other various ways withoutdeparting from the gist of the present invention as described in theappended claims.

For example, in the above embodiment, the device and systemconfigurations have been described in detail and concretely for easyunderstanding of the present invention; however, the present inventionis not limited to a configuration which includes all the elementsdescribed above. An element of the abovementioned embodiment may bereplaced by an element of another embodiment or an element of oneembodiment may be added to another embodiment. For each embodiment,addition, deletion, or replacement of an element can be made.

The control lines and data lines shown herein are those considered asrequired for explanation and do not cover all the control lines and datalines in the product. It may be considered that almost all constituentelements are connected to each other actually.

Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described andillustrated in detail, the disclosed embodiment is made for purposes ofillustration and example only and not limitation. The scope of thepresent invention should be interpreted by terms of the appended claims.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   1 . . . image forming device,-   30 . . . image inspection device,-   40 . . . after-treatment section,-   122 . . . controller,-   124 . . . inspection result report generator,-   125 . . . storage,-   126 . . . image inspection section,-   127 . . . inspection result report output section,-   129 . . . image reader

1.-15. (canceled)
 16. An image forming system comprising: an imageforming section configured to form an image on a recording material; animage reader configured to read the recording material on which theimage has been formed by the image forming section, and configured togenerate a read image; an image inspection section configured todetermine whether or not the read image has an abnormality, by comparingthe read image with a reference image; a first tray, wherein the imageforming system is configured to deliver the recording material to thefirst tray when the read image has been determined to have anabnormality; and a second tray, wherein the image forming system isconfigured to deliver the recording material to the second tray when theread image has been determined not to have an abnormality.
 17. The imageforming system according to claim 16, configured such that a firstrecording material, in which a first read image has been determined tohave a first abnormality, and a second recording material following thefirst recording material, are delivered to the first tray.
 18. The imageforming system according to claim 17, configured such that, at a time atwhich the first read image of the first recording material has beendetermined to have the first abnormality, an image has been alreadyformed by the image forming section on the second recording material.19. The image forming system according to claim 17, configured suchthat, at a time at which the first read image of the first recordingmaterial has been determined to have the first abnormality, the secondrecording material is being conveyed.
 20. The image forming systemaccording to claim 16, further comprising a display configured todisplay the read image that has been determined to have the abnormality.21. The image forming system according to claim 20, configured todisplay information indicating an abnormal spot in the read image thathas been determined to have the abnormality and that is displayed on thedisplay. 22.-23. (canceled)
 24. The image forming system according toclaim 20, wherein the display is provided in a terminal deviceconnected, via a network, to an image forming device having the imageforming section.
 25. An image forming method using an image formingsystem, the image forming method comprising: forming an image on arecording material with an image forming section of the image formingsystem; reading the recording material on which the image has beenformed by the image forming section and generating a read image, with animage reader of the image forming system; determining, with an imageinspection section of the image forming system, whether or not the readimage has an abnormality, by comparing the read image with a referenceimage; delivering the recording material to a first tray of the imageforming system when the read image has been determined to have anabnormality; and delivering another recording material to a second trayof the image forming system when another read image corresponding to theother recording material has been determined not to have an abnormality.26. The image forming method according to claim 25, comprisingdelivering, to the first tray, the recording material, in which the readimage has been determined to have the abnormality, and a secondrecording material following the recording material.
 27. The imageforming method according to claim 26, wherein, at a time at which theread image of the recording material has been determined to have theabnormality, an image has been already formed by the image formingsection on the second recording material.
 28. The image forming methodaccording to claim 26, wherein, at a time at which the read image of therecording material has been determined to have the abnormality, thesecond recording material is being conveyed.
 29. The image formingmethod according to claim 25, further comprising displaying, on adisplay of the image forming system, the read image that has beendetermined to have the abnormality.
 30. The image forming methodaccording to claim 29, comprising displaying, in the read image that hasbeen determined to have the abnormality and that is displayed on thedisplay, information indicating an abnormal spot. 31.-32. (canceled) 33.The image forming method according to claim 29, wherein the display isprovided in a terminal device connected, via a network, to an imageforming device having the image forming section.
 34. The image formingsystem according to claim 20, wherein the image forming system isfurther configured to display an enlarged image on the display, theenlarged image being an enlarged image of a part of the read image thathas been determined to have the abnormality.
 35. The image formingsystem according to claim 34, wherein the image forming system isfurther configured to display the enlarged image on the display, basedon an operation of a user for the read image that has been determined tohave the abnormality and that has been displayed on the display.
 36. Theimage forming system according to claim 35, wherein the image formingsystem is further configured to display, on the display, an enlargedimage of an area around the abnormal spot including the abnormal spot inthe read image that has been determined to have the abnormality, whenthe operation of the user has been performed for the area around theabnormal spot of the read image that has been determined to have theabnormality and that has been displayed on the display.
 37. The imageforming method according to claim 29, comprising displaying an enlargedimage on the display, the enlarged image being an enlarged image of apart of the read image that has been determined to have the abnormality.38. The image forming method according to claim 37, comprisingdisplaying the enlarged image on the display, based on an operation of auser for the read image that has been determined to have the abnormalityand that has been displayed on the display.
 39. The image forming methodaccording to claim 38, comprising displaying, on the display, anenlarged image of an area around the abnormal spot including theabnormal spot in the read image that has been determined to have theabnormality, when the operation of the user has been performed for thearea around the abnormal spot of the read image that has been determinedto have the abnormality and that has been displayed on the display.